18 December 2014 - Thanks to a unique partnership between UNICEF South Africa and Santam, ‘children’s rights’ was chosen as the theme for the insurer’s 2014 Child Art Project. Thousands of South Africa’s children did themselves and UNICEF proud by interpreting the theme in a unique, creative way.

Choosing only handful of artworks – from more than 4 000 exquisite entries – was no easy task for the competition judges. It took days of deliberation and discussion to choose 13 artworks for pride of place in Santam’s prestigious Child Art Calendar – and an additional 300 masterpieces to feature in Santam’s online gallery.

The Child Art Project is the longest-running Corporate Social Investment (CSI) project in South Africa, having recently celebrated its 50th anniversary.

It has evolved from a simple competition into a multifaceted initiative that includes informal art classes, the training of creative art teachers and the annual production of the iconic Santam Child Art Calendar, which is distributed to a wide network of stakeholders.

At a special exhibition held at Santam’s head office, CEO Ian Kirk presented framed canvasses of their work to two of the winning young artists, Kayla Molenaar and Juria Brand.

“Since the beginning of time, it has been the universal language of art that has crossed cultural and linguistic barriers. And in South Africa itself, it has always been a major force for cultural and social development,” added Ian.

The theme of ‘children’s rights’ for the 2014 competition was directly linked to the global commemoration of the 25th anniversary of the Convention on the Rights of the Child. Santam’s partnership with UNICEF on the 2014 Child Art Project formed a key aspect of efforts to raise awareness of child rights and to increase the participation of children in the creative expression of their rights. Thank you, Santam!